


Hold You Close

by littlebitlostandfound



Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-21
Updated: 2020-04-21
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:20:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23767594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlebitlostandfound/pseuds/littlebitlostandfound
Summary: Mary's not very certain how she got here. She fell asleep in her nursery that evening and when she woke up, she found herself in a completely different environment–it was cold out and there were houses next to each other that didn’t look anything like what she was accustomed to. She exhales. She wants her mum.
Relationships: Anne Boleyn/Catherine Parr
Comments: 3
Kudos: 67





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Finally got around to creating an A03 account. Will be transferring all my fics from my tumblr (little-bit-lost-and-found) to here. Enjoy!

She’s not very certain how she got here. She fell asleep in her nursery that evening and when she woke up, she found herself in a completely different environment–it was cold out and there were houses next to each other that didn’t look anything like what she was accustomed to.

She exhales.

She wants her mum.

She didn’t know if it was instinct or just pure luck, but the small four year old knocked on the door of the first house she saw. A woman with blonde hair looks out before looking down, her gaze softening immediately.

“Hello, love,” she starts warmly, “What’s your name? Are you lost?”

She nods, her voice quiet. “Mae.”

Jane’s eyes go wide. “Mae? Mary?”

Mary’s eyes bulge. How did the woman know?

“Come in, come in, please,” The lady says, ushering her in and taking off her coat. “I’m Jane, by the way. I think I know why you’re here.”

“I want my mum,” she whispers. She’s always been painfully shy and her mama always told her to use her words, oh she’d be so proud.

“Jane, who’s this and why does she look the splitting image of–oh!” Anne stops mid-sentence, her heart about to burst. She, Aragon, and Jane had been rather fortunate to have their children back in the present times, but Parr’s daughter wasn’t part of the big return. It gutted her, of course, and even though she tried to make things feel normal, she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sadness every time she saw the other queens with their little ones.

“I’ll go up and get her,” Anne said to Jane, bolting up the steps to grab Parr. Mary looked around and felt slightly overwhelmed, but mostly fascinated by her surroundings. Jane smiled fondly, seeing so much of Parr in this small girl, and led her to the living room to wait.

“I’d explain everything, but I’d rather have her tell it to you,” Jane said, putting an arm around the child’s shoulders. “Are you hungry, would you like anything to eat?”  
She nods once, “Yes, please.”

“Sure thing, love, I’ll go fix something up quick, are you good to stay here for a bit?” Jane waits for the child to give her affirmative before going to the kitchen.

Meanwhile upstairs, Anne tried to make as little ruckus as she could since she wanted for Parr to be alone with her daughter when they meet and not be surrounded by too many people. She knocks twice on Parr’s study, waiting for a soft ‘come in’ before she enters.

“Cathy, come down with me to the living room, I have a surprise for you.” Anne says excitedly, grinning from ear to ear. Parr couldn’t help but smile at Anne, her energy infectious. There wasn’t an occasion–was it her birthday today?

“Anne, if this is one of your pranks, I swear to God–” Parr starts, but Anne just takes her hand and leads her downstairs.

“It’s not a prank! You’ll like this one, I promise.”

Mary sees a black, rectangular screen perched on top of a dresser and she’s not quite sure what it was or why it’s there. Everything was so foreign to her that she didn’t know what her mind wants her to do. Before she could stand up and touch anything, Jane comes to the living room with a tray filled with biscuits and sliced fruit. Mary reaches for a chocolate digestive.

Anne brings Parr to the living room, her hands covering her eyes. Anne slowly takes her hands away and whispers, “Surprise, love.”

Parr couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Jane was wiping a small child’s hands and mouth since they were covered in chocolate, but it wasn’t Edward. It was a small girl with hair just as unruly as hers. Jane looks up and spots Parr, smiling softly. She leans towards the girl and tells her to turn around, which she did.

Parr gasps. It’s her Mary.

“Mama!” Mary exclaims, her eyes bright and excited. Parr lets out a small squeak, she never thought she’d see her again.

“Mae, love,” Parr whimpers, dropping down to her knees. Mary all but runs towards her, colliding her body against her mother and wraps her arms around her tightly.

“Hi Mama,” Mary whispers, kissing her cheek. Parr holds her impossibly closer, as if she was afraid that this wasn’t real.

“Hi, baby. Oh, Mae, you’re with me.” Parr breathes into her daughter’s mess of curls. Mary snuggles her nose into the crook of her neck. She felt so warm.

Parr sits down on the floor, her legs sprawled out and her daughter has hers around her mother’s waist. “Mama, I found you.”

Parr chokes out a reply, kissing the crown of her girl’s head one too many times. “Yes you did, Mae, I’m so proud.”

Mary’s heart blooms.

“Mama?”  
Parr couldn’t help but smile through her tears. She missed being called that by her Mae.

“Yes, darling?”

“Where are we?” Mary asks, unwrapping one of her arms from Parr’s neck only to put her thumb in her mouth. Parr would’ve coaxed her thumb out, too many germs, but right now she didn’t care. Mary leaned her head against Parr’s chest and by God, did she miss this.

“It’s a bit of a long story, baby girl,” Parr crooned, standing up with her daughter securely in her arms. “I’ll tell you everything in a while. Now, Mama just wants to hold you.”

Anne and Jane looked on at the duo, smiling and genuinely happy for them. They had their turn, now it was Parr’s.


	2. Chapter 2

The minute they were united that afternoon, Mae and Parr had become inseparable. She had introduced her daughter to all the other Queens and their children before they had just started on dinner, and glad as they were with the newest addition, they seemed to be happier about Parr’s disposition.

Katherine and Anna were keeping the children occupied while dinner was being prepared. Mae, the youngest of the bunch, saw that her mother was keeping busy in the kitchen and decided to detach from the group. She walks over to tug on her apron, looking up.

“I want to help, Mama,” Mae offers softly. Parr smiles down at her daughter and puts her hand on the crown of her head.

“Mama’s quite alright here, love, but that’s very thoughtful of you,” Parr smiles, not being able to resist referring to herself in third person. She had missed so much, she was going to let herself indulge. “Why don’t you go play with the others?”

Mae shakes her head. “Wanna help.”

Jane overhears, her heart melting at them both. “Mae, love, why don’t you come over here and help me set the table?”

Mae looks at her mother first for approval before heading over to Jane.

“Your little shadow is the sweetest thing,” Aragon commented from the counter, watching Jane tell Mae where to put the table napkins. Parr had taken charge of the kitchen, wanting to make something for her daughter to celebrate her first night here. “I’m so happy she’s with us now, Cathy, you’re absolutely glowing.”

Parr beams, convincing herself that the warmth on her cheeks was from all of the kitchen steam. “Thanks, Catherine. It feels amazing to have her again.”

Dinner that night was loud with hearty conversation. There weren’t any extra chairs available for Mae so she had ended up sitting on Parr’s lap, who didn’t mind sharing a plate one bit. Anne had surprised everyone afterwards by bringing out a chocolate cake that she got this afternoon, much to the children’s delight. “It’s Mae’s first night and how else to celebrate than with cake?”

“I want a big piece!” Katherine had chimed in with the other kids who were also calling dibs on the size of their slice.

“Ah ah, Mae first,” Jane said, hushing everyone and giving Kat a pointed look. She sliced the cake in equal portions and served the first piece to Mae and Parr. “Welcome home, Mae.”

While Jane was busying herself serving the slices to the other Queens and their children, Mae had only looked at the slice curiously.

“Cake, darling? It’s my favorite, and it’s chocolate flavored, look,” Parr said, forking off a small piece and put it up against her daughter’s mouth. She opened hesitantly, tasting only a bit, then her eyes widened.

“It’s good!” Mae grinned, finishing off the morsel her mother offered. Parr could only laugh when Mae took the fork from her hands and started feeding herself.

“Good call on the cake, love, thank you,” Parr called over to Anne, who could only blow a kiss before holding the top of Elizabeth’s head to stop her from squirming away as she attempted to wipe her mouth.

“Mama, have some,” Mae smiled, her mouth covered in chocolate. She positioned herself so she’d have her legs around her mother’s waist and fed her a forkful of cake. “Good cake!”

“Very good,” Parr agreed with a laugh, reaching over to grab a napkin to wipe her daughter’s mouth. Mae obliged, sitting still.

“Look at Mae sitting still, Liz. I’m not drilling your teeth, I’m just wiping your mouth,” Anne grits out with a laugh, eliciting a couple chuckles from the others as well. After clearing the table, they all started to head upstairs to wind down and prepare for bed.

Parr was about to run a bath for Mae when she realized she had nothing for her to change into. She figured she’d let her wear a small shirt of hers for the meantime, but made a mental note to take her out tomorrow before the show, get her what she needed.

“In you go, Mae. Water’s warm.” Parr smiles, lifting her up into the tub. Mae splashes around a bit, but mostly struggled to keep her eyes open as she had been exhausted from the day’s activities.

“Mama?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t wanna go back to the nurs'ry, wanna stay with you,” Mae yawns, rubbing her eyes with her wet fists.

“I know, darling, you’re staying with me, don’t worry,” Parr quickly finishes up the bath and dresses her up for bedtime. She doesn’t spend much time changing into her own sleepwear, as all she wanted to do was curl up next to her daughter after so long.

Parr pulls the covers over them, and Mae immediately snuggles her face into her neck, wrapping her arms around her. Her heart grows tenfold.

She feels her daughter slowly falling asleep, her head feeling heavier. She sighs in amazement–who would’ve thought she’d get a second chance at seeing her daughter grow?

“I love you so much, baby girl,” Parr whispers into the crown of her head. She inhales deeply, giving Mae a tight squeeze before letting herself fall asleep.

—–  
She hits snooze on her morning alarm.

Parr stretches out before turning on her side to wake her daughter up, but she was no where to be found. She bolted upright, pulling the covers away and jumping to her feet. She looked under the bed and around her room, trying to find proof of small human life but turned up with nothing.

It couldn’t be.

Sliding her back against the wall, she caves in and let the sobs rack through her body. Had it all been a dream?

Meanwhile downstairs, Jane had been preparing breakfast for everyone when she heard the pitter patter of footsteps. She greets the little one with a smile.

“Good morning, love, you’re up quite early,” Jane helps her up on the bar stool. “Fancy anything for breakfast?”

Mae thinks for a bit then shakes her head. “Tea for mama?”

“You want to bring it up to her?” Jane asks, already pouring tea into a mug. Mae nods, reaching up to grab it from her but Jane keeps it out of her reach.

“It’s very hot, wouldn’t want to hurt yourself,” Jane says, but moves the mug to one hand and reaches out for Mae’s hand with the other. “Let me help you with it going up, then you can hand it to her.”

When they reached the door, they heard faint cries from the inside, worrying the both of them. Jane immediately knocks, “Is everything alright, Cathy? I’m coming in.”

Mae beats her to it, though, she turns the knob and runs as soon as the door opened. She sees her mother against the wall, hugging her knees tight as she let her tears fall freely.

“Mama?” Mae whispers, crawling towards her mother. Parr’s head snaps up.

“Mae?” She couldn’t steel her voice, couldn’t open her eyes. She’s not sure if she’s still dreaming, if her mind was making things up. Mae crawls closer, and lightly touches Parr’s knee. That was all it took for her to breakdown again, scooping Mae into her arms and breathing her scent.

“Oh God,” Parr chokes out, pressing her cheek against her daughter’s head. “It wasn’t a dream, you’re here,” Parr breathes, trying to memorize how all this feels in case it ever slips through her fingers again. Jane was ready to intervene, but Mae seems to be the only one who could calm her down. She leaves the tea on the bedside table and left the two alone.

“I’m sorry,” Mae sniffles. “I went down when you were asleep because I wanted to get you something.”

Parr manages a laugh through her tears. “Nothing to apologize for, darling. Mama just got worried.”

Mae looks at her intently and wipes away her tears with her small hands. Parr catches one of them and kisses the inside of her wrist. She then proceeds to kiss her forehead, her cheeks, then travelled down to her tummy to blow a raspberry, making Mae squeal with laughter.

Parr laughs along. She’ll be okay.


	3. Chapter 3

Parr’s first full day with her daughter back couldn’t have been more eventful.

After the breakfast fiasco, she followed through with her plan last night to gather necessities for Mae, and knew that she had to bring her along as well.

“We’ll be back home early to drop the bags off, if you can wait up for us before heading to the theatre, that would be great,” Parr mentions to Kat as she dresses up her daughter in the clothes she had been wearing yesterday. “Also please let Jane know that we’re taking the car.”

“Sure thing!” Kat smiles, and then walks over to Parr’s dresser to get hair elastics and one of her headbands. She holds them up to her then motions to Mae. “May I?”

Parr was about to agree before biting her tongue—she had wanted to teach Mae to decide on things on her own. “Hey, love, aunty Kat wants to do your hair up like mine, is that alright?”

She sees a twinkle in her daughter’s eyes as she nods her head rapidly, excited about the fact that she would match with her mum. Kat makes sure to be gentle with her hair, but also quick enough that Mae wouldn’t get antsy. She secures the headband with a couple bobby pins before handing her a mirror to let her see the final look.

“Mama, look, same!” Mae is absolutely delighted with her hair and turns the mirror towards Parr to further drive her point. Kat beams with pride.

“We do look the same, love, and don’t you look absolutely darling,” Parr agrees with a laugh before leaning forward and whispers something in her daughter’s ear. She nods dutifully and leans over to wrap her small arms around Katherine.

“Thank you, aunty Kat,” Mae smiles sweetly, and Katherine returns the favor, squeezing her tight.

“My pleasure, sweetheart!” Kat jokes, hugging her again before standing up and straightening out her blouse. “I’ll be just downstairs, see you later!”

The moment Katherine goes out the door, Anne steps in. “Oh, babe, you never told me you had a twin!”

Mae puts her hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles, and Parr walks over to Anne to swat her arm playfully. “It’s Kat’s idea, I think she looks way better than I do.”  
“Hmm, I’d have to disagree,” Anne quips, stealing a quick kiss on the side of her lips. “I think you both look grand. Where are you off to?”

“Just heading out to get some things for Mae, would you like to come with us?”

“Sure thing, let me just tell Liz that I’ll be out for a while,” Anne says. As much as she wanted to bring her daughter along, she knew that her girlfriend would probably need the extra help, especially that Mae was much younger than her Elizabeth.

“Oh, it’s alright, you don’t have to–,” Anne had already left the room before Parr could protest. She looks back over to Mae and sees that she had been looking at her curiously.

“What’s on your mind, hmm?” Parr walks over to the bed and arranges the curls on top of her head.

“Anne kissed you.” Mae starts. Parr could only nod, she should probably know as early as now. “Are you married?”

“Yes, she did, love, but we’re not married,” Not yet, she thinks. “She’s my girlfriend.”

“Oh, okay.” Mae accepts. “You love her, too?”

“I love her very much, yes,” Parr nods to prove her point, “As much as I love you.”

Mae grins, leaning forward to embrace Parr and she automatically wraps her arms around her daughter, resting her cheek against the crown of her head.

After Anne drops by their room again to let them know that she was ready, they make their way to the department store not far from their flat. Mae’s eyes are wide with curiosity–there’s so many new things to see and her mind reels at how much she has yet to discover.

“I’ll be picking up a couple things for you, love, but I’ll be with you in a minute,” Parr tells her, bending down to meet Mae’s eyes. “Anne will take you around so you can find some clothes that you like, alright?” She nods once before taking Anne’s outstretched hand and walking away to look through more options.

Parr piles up on the basics–undergarments, toiletries, and medicine–before weighing her options on a carseat. She’s put away a good percentage of her salary from the show, and if there’s anyone worth spending it on, it’s her daughter.

Meanwhile, Mae has already chosen a couple outfits with much help from Anne. She would pull out dungarees and shirts and shoes that she thinks she would like and would give them a thoughtful look before making her decision.

“Oh, Cathy would adore you in this,” Anne gushes, holding up a royal blue a-line dress. the color matched her costume in the show and given their current matching hairstyles, Parr wouldn’t be opposed to the idea.

“It looks really pretty,” Mae smiles, reaching up to touch the fabric. Anne nods before removing it from the hanger and placing it in their nearly-full shopping bag. She feels her phone vibrate in her pocket and answers it immediately.

“Hello?”

“Hey, love, how are you on the other side of the store?” Parr’s voice is low through the phone, and Mae looks up at Anne, not completely sure what was happening.

“We’re doing pretty well, actually, she’s got a great eye,” Anne smiles. “You got everything you need?”

“I think so, I’ve also got a carseat just about ready to be installed,” Parr updates. “Have you gotten her pyjamas?”

“Ah, forgot about those,” Anne admits sheepishly, and she hears her girlfriend chuckle on the other line. “Meet you at the sleepwear section?”

“Heading over there now, see you,” Anne cuts off the call and stretches out her hand for Mae to take. “Come on, let’s go to Cathy.”

They navigate through the aisles until they get where they need to be, and Anne spots a mass of curly hair peeking through the racks. She sneaks up behind her and taps her shoulder. “Do you need some help, ma'am?”

“Yeah, just wondering if you have this in a smaller–” Parr starts, and then stops herself when she sees Anne stifling her laugh. “Oh, you.”

“Gotcha,” Anne smirks. Parr looks behind her, expecting to see her daughter but she was nowhere to be found. “Where’s Mae?”

Anne quickly spins around and scans the area for a small child, trying to hide the panic in her voice. “Mae?”

Parr swallows. She won’t let her emotions get the best of her even though her heart rate has already skyrocketed. “Shouldn’t you be with her?”

“I turned around for two seconds, I swea—“ Anne was cut off by Mae jumping out from the clothes rack behind them. “Boo!”

“Oh, thank God,” Parr exhales, walking forward immediately to hold her daughter’s hand. “Mary, I know you want to play but please don’t hide around places you’re not familiar with, you’ve got us so worried.”

At the sound of her full name, tears immediately well up in Mae’s eyes, and before she knew it she was clutching onto Parr’s leg and burying her face in her thigh.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Mae repeats between hiccups. Parr crouches down to give her a proper hug, which her daughter gladly melts into.

“Mama’s not mad, love, I’m just scared to lose you.” Parr tells her, looking straight into her eyes to let her know that she meant every word. Anne had crouched down next to her girlfriend, placing a hand on her knee as an apology before reaching up to trace her thumbs over the corners of Mae’s mouth. “Hey, darling, we’re not upset at all, see? Won’t you give your Mama a big Mae smile?”

She breathes in and out with much coaching from Parr–“That’s it, love, breathe with Mama,”–and after a short while, gives them both a small, shy grin, and Parr is quick to give her one in return. “There’s our sweet girl.”

They carry on with getting a couple night sets, with Mae making sure that she was always holding on to either Anne or her mother.

After bringing all their items on the counter, Mae tugs on Parr’s pant leg. She raises her arms up to her the moment she looked down, and with a gentle smile, she lifted her up and settled her in her arms, her legs wrapping immediately around her waist. Anne smiles and snaps a quick picture of them both—she made a mental note to send it to Parr when they get home.

Mae rests her head on her mother’s shoulder, yawning softly. Parr kisses the top of her head as she started to sway from side to side, trying to soothe her to sleep. Anne, seeing that Parr has her hands full, takes care of the transaction and hands over her card to pay for the items.

Parr was about to protest, trying to shift Mae to one arm without jostling her when Anne put her hand up. “It’s alright, just pay me back whenever.”

She relaxes, then slowly nods. “Thanks, love, I’ll send it to you within the day.”

They had someone from the store help out with bringing the bags to the parking lot, and Anne had installed the carseat in the back without a hitch. Parr slowly lowers Mae down and straps her daughter in, kissing her forehead before stepping back to shake her arms and bend backwards.

Anne chuckles. “There’s your workout for the day.”

Parr lets out a laugh, stretching her arms up and resting them on Anne’s shoulders. “Thanks again for coming with us today, Annie, I never would’ve managed alone.”

Anne gives her a quick kiss on the forehead.

“Always.”


End file.
